I think we can all admit to doing our fair share of questionable manoeuvres in rental cars, and Raphael and his friends are no exception. He writes, “This year myself and a couple of mates went to the Isle of Man TT. Being at one of the most dangerous tracks in the world, of course we had to have a crack at a ‘hot lap’ in our camper van! Long story short, we managed to jump the famous Ballaugh Bridge. I’m sure you’ve seen footage of the bikes flying over this; well, now we can say we’ve jumped it in a used Toyota that was our house!”

Nguyen Ta

When Nguyen was nearing the end of his vacation in Italy he was feeling a tad disappointed about not getting the chance to visit Ferrari. Little did he know, however, that a classic Italian beauty of a different kind was lurking in one of the small empty side streets of Rome. Naturally, he couldn’t resist capturing a quick snap of this pristine Lancia Delta Integrale in its home habitat.

Elijah Lane, Kentucky, USA

We’re loving this cool moment of man and machine captured by Elijah Lane from Kentucky. Elijah writes, “Every year a great event called Beatersville is held at the Phoenix Hill tavern in Louisville. The streets are overrun with rat rods, kustoms and early model motorcycles from all over the United States. I spotted this very unique mid-engined rod in the early morning as the sun had just started to rise above the buildings, casting beautiful light onto the greenery behind a wide spectrum of insane vehicles.”

Steve White, Croydon, UK

Steve White was attending the 2014 Tempest Rally, held in Aldershot, England, when he happened to capture this action-filled moment. Steve had ventured deep into the woods of Warren for the sixth stage of the rally, as he’d had been tipped off by a friendly photographer that this was a particularly exciting spot. Sure enough, action followed! Steve writes, “As the Land Rover passed through the section prior to the standing water, it began to slide. Although Marc, the driver, managed to catch the slide, the Land Rover had already veered off the track; the front wheel caught the bank and over it went. As soon as the Land Rover landed, my mate and I dropped our bags and ran up to help the crew. Thankfully there were no injuries and marshalls were on hand moments later to help recover the car. The Land Rover was subsequently repaired and went on to compete in Wales Rally GB – less than a week after its roll!”

Fabian Zimmermann, Bielefeld, Germany

Fabian Zimmermann captured an impressive fireball shooting out the back of a BMW M1 Procar at the AvD Oldtimer GP at the Nürburgring. Fabian writes, “I was looking forward to watching the DRM-Revival, as this holds the most spectacular cars in my opinion. Car after car and lap after lap, I was hoping to get this one shot, which I eventually got.”

Kenneth Midgett, Nashville, Tennessee USA

Nashville-based photographer Kenneth Midgett shared with us this beautiful moment of a Porsche 907LH basking in golden sunlight at Daytona. He writes, “I was covering the inaugural HSR Classic 24 Hour last year, and it was my first time shooting – or even being – at the world-famous Daytona International Speedway. Every photographer has that ‘money shot’ that they dream of getting, and after waiting for the morning sun to crest Daytona’s legendary banking, that moment presented itself. This is easily one of my favorite shots and one I’m sure I’ll always be proud of!” A gorgeous shot – nice one, Kenneth!

Bartosz Grzonka, Gdańsk, Poland

We’ve all had a moment when we’ve felt like kicking ourselves for not having our camera handy. Bartosz recently had one of those when he came across this cool ’77 Opel Kadett. He explains, “I was riding home on the same road as always when I saw it. I raced home as fast as I could, hoping that if I came back with my camera it wouldn’t have driven away. This evening I got lucky and it was still there! I shot this on a long exposure with only one flash and then stitched it in post processing, and the tram passing by in the background made for a cool effect. Sadly, I’ve never seen this car again.”

Enrico Bogetto, Italy

Enrico was shooting at the RX Media Day at Franciacorta Circuit, where he captured Norwegian driver Petter Solberg getting a crazy amount of air over the first crest of the course. This really gives you an idea of the extreme punishment these cars have to endure!

Patrick Turner, Portland, Oregon USA

We love this shot taken by Patrick Turner at Pat’s Acres Racing Complex in his home state of Oregon. He writes, “This event took place right after Formula D Seattle; a few of the Pro drivers came down to thrash their machines alongside some locals around this little Go-Kart track. This particular photo is of local favorite Matt Panic in his ’73 Celica which runs a Beams 3S-GE engine. The atmosphere was very relaxed and it was all about having fun. No judges, no timers – just people pushing each other to get better.”

Marco Pusch, Stuttgart, Germany

In February last year, Stuttgart local Marco visited the Mercedes-Benz Museum and took along his camera, not realising that his favourite photo of the day was going to be taken on his way back through the parking garage. Marco writes, “As I was leaving, I caught a glimpse of this SLS AMG GT3 sitting between the other visitor cars. It’s the victorious car of the 2013 Bathurst 12 Hour race prepared by the Australian Erebus Motorsport team. I really like the contrast between all the dull and dark ordinary cars and this motorsports hero.”

Matt Lindsay, Victoria, Australia

​Sometimes it’s the moments that catch us off guard that we remember most. Matt Lindsay had one of those moments two years ago at a local event called Chopped – a ‘pre-65 cars only’ weekend of dirt drags and no rules car fun. Matt explains, “I was standing at the last turn of the course, and the approaching Vauxhall gasser pictured showed no signs of putting on a show. Suddenly, it rumbled into the turn and before I knew it, the driver mashed the go-pedal. The rear slicks hooked sideways and a lovely spray of dust engulfed me and covered my lens just after I rattled off a couple of shots.”

Dennis Podnebess, Riga, Latvia

As a photographer, you’re sometimes faced with limited vantage points to shoot from, but with the right mindset this can work to your advantage. Dennis Podnebess was shooting the first stage of the 2015 Latvian Drifting Championship when he found himself in a similar situation. He explains, “This event was hard for photographers because of fences surrounding track on full duration. But for me, it resulted in my best shot from that event. I managed to shoot through the fence and get a wide-angle pan of the crazy Estonian rear-wheel drive Audi driven by Henri Puhmas.”

Andrew Hyland, Leicester, Massachusetts USA

Shooting at New England Dragway in Epping NH, Andrew Hyland spotted this race-ready Ford Fairlane preparing to go maximum attack at the Tasca Performance Ford Fest. Andrew writes, “In what seemed to be a sea of Mustangs from all generations, this Fairlane Thunderbolt instantly grabbed my attention as it entered the staging lanes when they called the Quick Ford class. When you see a teardrop hood on a Fairlane, you know it means business! The massive slicks, parachute hanging off the back, and Lexan windows also let you know it was a serious car. After its qualifying passes it could be seen sporting a 10.55 dial in on its windows.”

Nathan Leach-Proffer, Denver, Colorado USA

Nathan shares the story behind his image: “The Porsche club in Denver hosts a driving event each winter on a frozen lake, which is open to any car. This Lotus was one of the first cars to run, which meant the sun was just coming out over the mountains, lighting up the ice. The wind was also blowing the snow, giving a cool effect. I dream of owning a Lotus Elise/Exige and seeing this one on the ice made me want one even more!”

Alexander Ulanov, St. Petersburg, Russia

Next up, Alexander has shared with us an awesome photo he took during a WRC Sweden special stage last year. Alexander writes, “It was the final race of the day and it was getting dark. Wheels were starting to dig all the way into the icy ground and sparks were flying. In this moment I was able to capture red-hot brakes, a fire in the exhaust pipe and a pillar of sparks – amazing!”

Kuro Neko, Japan

Last but not least, Kuro’s moment includes an AE86 ​drift legend, a 10,000rpm-screaming twin-cam Honda, and a snarling Nissan in-line six in front Japan’s most famous mountain. Taken on the popular Hakone Skyline road on a clear day with breathtaking views, this is one Speedhunting moment that we’re sure will be cherished forever.

A huge thank-you to everyone who submitted their photos for this feature, and we hope you’ve enjoyed this exciting collection of imagery of different Speedhunting moments taken by you, our readers. Until next time, happy Speedhunting!

Story curated by Taryn Croucher
Instagram: taryncroucher
Twitter: @taryncroucher
taryn@speedhunters.com

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